France Pledges Support to NDLEA
Stella Peters
The government of France has assured Nigeria of more collaboration and support In its anti-narcotics war. The promise was given at the weekend after weeks of intensive special operations training for National Drug Law Enforcement Agency officers, NDLEA, by men of an elite tactical unit of the French National Police, popularly called RAID.
Giving the assurance at the weekend in Abuja, the French Police Attaché in Nigeria, Mr. Phillipe Crespo, who led the trio of Messrs. Phillipe Barrau, Tony Albaladejo, and Cedric Hocquette on a courtesy visit to the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Buba Marwa (Rtd), at the agency’s national headquarters in Abuja, commended Marwa for the warm reception he always accorded the French team and his willingness to collaborate with local and international partners in his determined effort to curb the scourge of substance abuse and illicit drug trafficking in Nigeria.
He said the success of NDLEA’s operations is helping to protect Nigerians and Nigerian cities and communities in foreign lands through the Agency’s interdiction efforts, which have led to huge seizures of assorted illicit drug consignments heading to Europe and other parts of the world.
The visit followed the conclusion of a series of special operations training for officers of the Strike Force Unit in NDLEA at the agency’s Academy in Jos, Plateau state. This was the third such training in the last two years.
Crespo said the French government, through the French National Police, will continue supporting and collaborating with NDLEA. He proposed that the growing partnership be documented in a memorandum of understanding in the new year.
In his remark, French technical expert Phillipe Barrau praised the diligence, expertise, and professionalism of NDLEA officers involved in the three-week training exercise, adding that both sides had a lot to learn from each other. He commended the support and capacity of the agency’s Academy, which made the programme seamless and successful.
In his response, Marwa thanked the French government for its support and partnership.
“I remember in 2022 when I visited the headquarters of RAID in France on invitation and made a request for this type of training. I never knew it’d come so fast and be this consistent. Soon after that visit, a team of experts was sent to train our personnel, and I am glad this is the third such exercise.
He said: “The drug problem is vast and worldwide, and as such, we require global partnership, collaboration, and every bit of expertise we can acquire to confront the drug cartels and put an end to their activities, which pose a direct threat to public health and the security of countries across the globe.
“It is, therefore, a thing of joy that our collaboration is not just growing at the level of drug law enforcement, but we can see the growing partnership between our two leaders: President Bola Tinubu and President Emmanuel Macron; our governments and our countries; this will in no small measure bring great benefits to both sides.”
He welcomed the proposed MoU and expressed his readiness to see the relationship between the two organisations continue to grow.
